Monday, April 23, 2012

My mom’s banana
pudding has been one of my favorite treats for practically as long as I’ve been
able to eat solid foods. It’s the bring-to-a-potluck, make-for-holidays,
good-day-for-a-barbecue dessert staple. The technique changes a bit depending
on variables like the flavor pudding we have on hand or how many boxes of Nilla
Wafers are in the cabinet, but the
essential Southern-style spring-is-in-bloom flavor remains untouched.

1 pkg. banana cream pudding mix

1 pkg. French vanilla pudding mix

4 cups milk

1 lg. container Cool
Whip

2-3 bananas, sliced

1 box Nilla wafers

In a large mixing bowl, combine pudding mixes and milk;
whisk until smooth. Fold in Cool Whip
to pudding mixture until completely combined. Layer Nilla wafers on the bottom of a large serving bowl. Pour a layer of
pudding over the top, and then add a layer of bananas. Continue layering in
this fashion, ending with pudding at the top. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Monday, April 16, 2012

I had the pleasure of volunteering in my daughter’s class a few weeks ago and got to help out with their adorable spring craft. Try it with your kiddos!

You will need:

1 sock

Rice

Rubberband or string

Ribbon

Permanent marker

Cotton ball or pom-pom

Button

Googly eyes

Scissors

Hot glue

Instructions:

Fill the sock with about a cup of rice. Gather the sock together and tightly secure with a rubberband or string. Fill sock with another 1/3-1/2 cup of rice. Secure the top with rubberband or string. Cut the remaining top of sock in half to form ears. Tie a ribbon around the neck portion and trim to desired length. With hot glue, secure eyes, button nose, and cotton ball tail to the face and back of the bunny. Draw on whiskers and mouth.

As a main course or side dish, this rich pasta is sure to please your family or a whole crowd!

1 pkg penne pasta, boiled per package directions

½ cup olive oil

¼ cup balsamic vinegar

¼ cup minced basil

2 T brown sugar

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

¼ tsp garlic powder

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked (Try broiling)

¼ cup grated parmesan

Prepare pasta per package instructions; drain and place in large bowl. Cover and refrigerate 1-2 hours, until chilled.

In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, basil, sugar, salt, pepper, and garlic powder; pour over pasta and stir to coat. Cut cooked chicken into bite-sized cubes and add to pasta(Tip: This is a good way to use up leftover chicken, but if you don’t have any on hand, try broiling raw, seasoned chicken breasts for 8-9 minutes per side). Stir in parmesan. Chill until ready to serve.

Monday, April 9, 2012

For years, I was under the common preconceived notion that food that was good for you could not possibly taste good and was probably too expensive to make on a budget. Websites like Skinnytaste have convinced me that I was wrong. I ran across Gina’s website while blog-stalking one day and have made or been inspired by many of her recipes. They are always full of flavor, reasonably priced, and appealing to my whole family. Thanks to Gina for helping me enjoy eating better.

Pork:

1 tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp ground ginger

1 lb pork tenderloin

¼ cup Sweet Red Chili Sauce

1 T honey

1 tsp Sriracha

Salsa:

1 large mango, peeled and diced

2 T fresh cilantro, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 T minced jalapeño

2 T lime juice

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a small bowl, combine garlic powder, salt, and ginger. Rub evenly over pork and place tenderloin on a sprayed broiler pan. Mix chili sauce, honey, and Sriracha together in a small bowl. Brush sauce liberally over pork during the last 10 minutes of cooking. Roast pork for 40-45 minutes, until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees. Remove pork from oven, cover with foil, and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving.

While pork cooks, combine salsa ingredients in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Top sliced pork with salsa for serving.

Friday, April 6, 2012

Happy Easter! I hope that everyone has a great weekend and is able to catch the Easter Bunny with this yummy snack mix. It is super easy to make and requires NO BAKING! One of the best things about this snack mix is that you can add in or take out any ingredients that you wish. If I were to make this again I think I would replace the popcorn with peanuts, however that would take away the "cotton tail" look of the bait. Recipe is from the blog Bloom Designs.

Spread the chex, pretzels and popcorn out on a cookie sheet or in a cake pan and mix together. Melt 1 cup of white chocolate chips with about one tsp of vegetable oil in the micro wave and drizzle over the mix. With a spoon mix the chocolate into the mix. Add sprinkles to the top of the mix and let the mix cool/set. Once the chocolate has hardened break up the mix and add a desired amount of M&Ms.

This DIY Moby wrap was fairly easy to make and it was fun to personalize the colors. There are several differences I have noticed between the DIY version and the actual version that might make it harder to use this wrap for all of the different "holds" that an actual Moby can do. Please make sure you review the blog this came from, her instructional video and the Moby website for instructions on how to properly use the wrap. You can find the tutorial on the blog A Load of Craft.

I used 5.5 yards of jersey knit material and a 22 x 22 inch piece of fabric for my wrap. Right now the wrap will not tie in the front but that could be because I am 39 weeks pregnant! I can't wait for the baby to get here to try it out. If I remember I will try to post an update to let you know how the wrap is working! The hardest part for me was cutting the 5.5 yards all the same width. I think I got it fairly even in the end!

Monday, April 2, 2012

Craving some flavor? Try this simple Crockpot meal that’s bursting with taste and tempered with the perfect amount of spice. It’ll lure your family to the kitchen with heavenly smells.

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Salt and pepper

1 cup honey

½ cup soy sauce

¼ cup ketchup

1 T canola oil

1 T sesame oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

½ tsp onion powder

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

2 T cornstarch

2 T water

Sesame seeds

Trim chicken thighs and place in the bottom of a large slow cooker; season both sides with salt and pepper. In a bowl, whisk together honey, soy sauce, ketchup, oils, garlic, onion powder, and red pepper flakes. Pour over the chicken and turn to coat. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours.

Remove chicken from the pot and shred with two forks. Combine cornstarch with water and stir into the hot liquid. Return shredded chicken to the pot, stir into thickened sauce, and and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve over rice and garnish with additional sesame seeds.